Status: COMPLETED March 2015
'Thomson House Community Garden' is a project which expands the existing garden bed infrastructure of Thomson House grounds with the addition of a community container garden, furthering the mandate of the PGSS Sustainability Action Plan and Environment Committee. Several summer and fall workshops will share resources and teach the skills needed for success in small-scale urban agriculture.
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In 2011, the SPF funded the construction and maintenance of three raised beds and one rain-garden built on Thomson House grounds with objectives of making the House more sustainable, increasing its members interest in urban agriculture, and ultimately local food production for its restaurant. Unfortunately, while the garden setup went according to plan, the desired local food production for Thompson House restaurant and the institutionalization of garden maintenance were unsuccessful.
Following the lines of PGSS' new Sustainability Action Plan, which mandates an increase in environmental education events, diversification of native plants on the grounds, and a commitment to getting local produce onto the restaurant menu, the 'Thomson House Community Garden' project is responsible for the installation of a community container garden on Thomson House grounds.This new garden comes with a renewed commitment to the original 2011 gardening goals as well as monthly meetings and urban agricultural skill improvement workshops. Proposed workshops at the garden include set up, pest management, canning and preserves and winterizing.
The new garden consists of 7 self-watering containers, each managed by a participant in the program responsible for its planning, planting and harvest, as well as three raised beds and 6 bins used for herb production by the restaurant.
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Contact
line.bourdages [at] mail.mcgill.ca (Line Bourdages)